


A Taste

by sylvain



Category: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (Bay Movies)
Genre: Drunk kiss, Friends to Lovers, Love Confessions, Other, Tipsy Leonardo
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-12
Updated: 2020-02-12
Packaged: 2021-02-28 03:56:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,397
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22677538
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sylvain/pseuds/sylvain
Summary: At Mikey's 21st birthday, Leo offers you a taste of his beer--and all of his heart.Inspired by @writinandcryin'sdrunk!Leocomic on tumblr
Relationships: Leonardo (TMNT)/Gender Neutral Reader, Leonardo (TMNT)/Reader, Leonardo (TMNT)/You
Comments: 10
Kudos: 103





	A Taste

Mikey's 21st is loud. 

You haven’t been able to check your voicemail yet, but now you understand why Leo texted you a reminder to use the far entrance to the lair. Music pours out from the common room, it’s surprising it can’t be heard from street level. Raph and Donnie have really outdone themselves for their little brother. The place has transformed into a nightclub, of sorts. Dark with shocks of strobing color, there’s just enough light in the room for you to make out the shapes of the turtles and their dates as they bop and gyrate to the music. 

You make your way through the ‘dancefloor’ with waves and a smile to the small crowd and a big hug to Mikey. Then it’s off to find somewhere to rest your ear drums for a while. You make the mistake of walking past the speakers again; they’re loud enough that you're squinting, as though that helps your ears filter out the noise. In a way, you suppose, it does. It helps you focus on Leo's lips as he welcomes you to the makeshift bar the guys have set up next to the kitchen.

Greeting Leo isn’t as easy as the quick waves to his brothers. With him, it’s tempting to go in for a hug, to test a kiss on the cheek. With him, you have to be more careful; it’s tempting to ask for more than what he’s willing to give. 

You drum your hands on the bar top and look over the selection of hard alcohol, mixers, and beers. Maybe a drink or two will help you unwind. It should take the edge off of the anxiety. You had thought it would ease up once you were seated next to your best friend. But surprisingly, your heart seems to be beating faster. You feel like you’re going to vibrate out of your skin and all Leo’s done so far is lean into your side and say hello. Of course, because of the music, he has to speak directly at your ear in order for you to hear him at all. 

His voice is smooth and his breath is hot as he comments on his brothers’ ideas of fun. He’s complaining more than you think he really means. In fact, he seems to talk just to deflect from his own nervous energy.

Even so, you’re grateful he’s started a conversation for you, though it’s stilted and rambly and mostly about how much things have changed in the past few years. You nod along and offer your support. It makes sense now, the way he bounces his knees under the table; you know change makes Leo nervous. It’s one of the reasons you keep your feelings for him to yourself. You don’t want to scare him off. You don’t want things to change in your friendship, if it means they’ll change for the worse.

As you consider ‘worse’ and push away fantasies of ‘better’, the vodka and cranberry juice call your name, but you’re not sure you really want all that. So, you turn your sights on the array of artisan beers to your left.

Leo’s still talking about how scary it can be to take a leap from one role to the next, and you wonder if he’s thinking about giving Mikey some new responsibilities on their team. You ask as much and Leo looks a little surprised, but then waves off the idea. His train of thought is all over the place, you think he may be confusing himself.

Over his shoulder, you see the others dancing provocatively with their dates, and it looks like fun, but you'll have to miss out. The only one you want holding you that close is the turtle nursing a beer and occasionally sparing you a glance so intense it makes you look away.

There had to have been a time, you think, before you had solidified your place in the friendzone. You think, maybe, there had been some opportunity that you missed, where you and Leo could have tried to be something more to each other.

Finally, Leo slips out of his own musings long enough to follow your eye line to the drinks in front of him. “You thirsty?” 

You shrug and your arm just barely brushes Leo’s as you move. Shivers run over your skin from that small point of contact. “I dunno what to try.” It’s true. You’d like to avoid hard alcohol and its ‘loose-tongue’ side effects, but the fancy selection of alternatives isn’t one you’d have picked for yourself.

Leo’s cheeks are dark under his mask. Being tipsy brings an adorable flush to his smiling expression. “This is really good,” he says, holding up the bottle like it’s some kind of prize. “Wanna taste?”

You take a peek at the label, but it’s not like you have anything to lose. With a smile, you welcome the offer, “Sure!” It’s not the first time you’ve shared a drink, and you think that it’ll be nice to not waste an entire bottle of someone’s peanut butter ale or cherry lager. But as you wait for Leo to hand you the drink, you end up watching him press the bottle to his lips and tilt his head back. “So…” you cock your head to the side in question, “can I taste it or...?”

“Yeah-” Leo holds up his hand to ask for “-one sec-”

And then he kisses you. 

He takes your head in his hands, pulls you halfway out of your chair, and brings your mouths together in an honest to goodness kiss. Your eyes go wide, but his eyes flutter closed. The kiss is closed-lipped and soft, and it doesn’t really give you a taste of the beer at all. You could almost laugh. You think you would, if your body could catch up with your racing thoughts. If your heart could slow down enough for you to catch your breath.

Leo breaks the kiss and his eyes blink at you. Noting your shocked expression and the fact that you didn’t kiss him back, his rambling starts up again. "I'm sorry, was that not-- I shouldn't have just--" 

He starts to pull away, but you place your hand over his as it retreats to the table. The caress of your thumb over his knuckles draws his attention to your hands, hypnotizing him as he stumbles through an apology neither of you really wants him to finish. You don’t want his apologies; you want him to kiss you again. 

After a silence between you that seems to go on forever and somehow drowns out the techno hip hop all around you, Leo turns his palm up to take your hand. “Do you wanna dance?” he asks, although you thought he never would. 

You’re mostly hidden from his brothers by the large arcade machines, but still, you’re grateful the boys have the place dark enough to pass for a nightclub. It's easier like this, with your back against Leo’s chest. It’s easier not having to find the words for what you feel. 

It isn’t long before you’re giving into the music and the wills of your bodies. You and Leo fit together so easily, your hips rolling against his. The beat washes over you and when you close your eyes, all you care about is Leo's breath on your neck, his hands on your waist, his pelvis pressed against you from behind. He brushes your hair away from your ear like he had at the bar so that you could hear him over the music. Only this time, he doesn’t speak. Instead, he peppers a trail of kisses down your neck to your shoulder and your whole body gives a shiver. You turn in his arms to capture the next kiss with your lips. 

He pulls you closer and sways into you in rhythm to the song. You move with him, luxuriating in the warmth that pools and swirls in your belly. You can feel his arousal brush against you and you press in closer. You moan and deepen the kiss, but his body responds too favorably to stay in the common room and he asks you to follow him to his bedroom instead.

You nod against his forehead, but he’s still got you by the waist. He’s still holding you to him and dancing as slow as the music allows. The smell of hops and ginger fills the air between you as he tries to catch his breath. You remind him of his suggestion to go somewhere more private and all of the sudden, he can't get to his room quick enough. 

It isn’t until he closes the bedroom door and leans back against it that you notice just how glassy Leo’s eyes are. How lazy his smile. How slowly he moves toward you. He kisses you again, but he's so obviously drunk that you stop yourself from pressing your body against his again.

"I don't think we should take this further tonight."

At your words, the blood drains from Leo's cheeks and a new tension overtakes him. "Oh, I-- I didn't mean to-- We don't have to go further. Of course. We don't have to. I understand."

But he's so flustered and apologetic, you wonder if he really does. "Not tonight. I don’t think we should go further tonight,” you clarify. “You're drunk… and my best friend… and-" You help him to sit at his bed as you struggle to explain why this is a bad idea. 

His eyes shine as they look up at you, glassy and sad. When he says, “I love you,” for the first time, it sounds like his heart is breaking.

Your face goes tight with the effort it takes not to frown. Your heart is breaking, too. "Tell me again when you're sober." You don’t think that, in the light of day, Leo will be feeling quite the same way.

But Leo rubs his hands over his thighs and swallows hard. He’s not backing down. "I'd like to tell you… everyday… if that'd be ok."

It doesn’t feel real. You can’t let yourself believe him when he’s like this. You don’t know if he’s ever been drunk before, but you’ve certainly never seen him so loose with his words or affections. He isn’t in his right mind and you won’t take advantage of the sudden clarity alcohol has brought to him. 

Mindful to keep the boundaries you set, you kiss Leo’s forehead and say goodnight. Nonetheless, after closing the door behind you, you linger in the tunnel outside his room. You know you have a voicemail from him still unopened from earlier today. You open it, just to hear his voice again. To hear him sober. To remind yourself that he’s a friend and not really looking for anything more.

But the Leo that you hear on the recording is wrought with just as much anxiety as the one that sat with you at the bar before your kiss. "Hey, it's me,” he says, and your heart melts a little. You love how he can say those three words and the world stops spinning. 

The voicemail continues, “The guys are heading out for supplies for tonight,” and Leo’s confidence begins to falter, “I was hoping you'd come by early.” His voice lifts at the end, like a question. “There's something I wanna ask you. Well, tell you.” Then, Leo heaves a sigh and laughs at himself a little. You turn toward his room and stare as you listen to the rest. “Well, there's something I wanna talk to you about. So, come on by when you get this, or whenever. I just…-” another sigh “-I'm really looking forward to seeing you."

As you stand in front of Leo’s door, every nerve in your body seems to be firing at once. They send fuzzy tingles over your skin, distracting you from the feeling of the doorknob in your hand. You knock and, at the sound of Leo’s voice, ease the door open.

Leo is still sitting where you left him, on the edge of the bed with his head in his hands.

“I just got your message,” you explain and he raises his eyes to yours. “I’m sorry I couldn’t get here earlier so we could talk before the party.”

“Yeah, I-” Leo shifts and hugs his arms over his chest. “If you had come earlier, I would have said…” His gaze drops to your feet until you helpfully supply the rest of his confession.

“That you love me.”

Leo nods as you take steps toward the bed. “I would have asked you to be mine--my date--for tonight.”

A slow smile spreads across your face. “I would have said, ‘yes’.” When Leo looks up at your words, your smile grows.

Hope shines in his eyes, but there’s caution there, as well. “And after tonight? Would you-”

You reach out and touch his cheek, then lean down to his ear like he’s done so many times to you already this evening. “Ask me in the morning.” 

The stroke of your hand along his jawline is full of affection. The press of your lips between his eyes holds a promise. You know, even in his intoxicated state, he won’t misread this goodbye as a rejection. You pull away and he blinks up at you. Then, before you can move too far from reach, he catches your hand. You can’t help but hum in amusement as he pulls you closer. 

He asks, “Did you like it?” and your expression pinches in confusion. The only thing you don’t like about the night is that it needs to end. But the assurance of tomorrow thrills you.

“The ginger beer,” he clarifies. “Did you like it?”

“Oh,” you say, having forgotten all about the drink Leo had offered before stealing his kiss. “I couldn’t really tell.”

“Hmm,” he considers your answer with more gravity than it warrants. Then, with a light touch, Leo’s hands alight to your hips. He smiles playfully as he guides you to sit in his lap. “Maybe-” he says as his gaze lingers on your mouth “-maybe, you should have one last taste, before you go.”

The smile you reflect back at him says ‘just this one,’ but you lean in and your lips murmur, “Sure” against his.


End file.
